The terrain of S9 was exactly as it had been in the fantasy Kalix had shared with her, but the reality of actually walking through the desert still had her jumping and flinching with the volume of so many beasts roaring.

The sounds bounced off the enormous boulders, making the clumps of tough grayish-green grass and scrubby yellow bushes almost vibrate.

Given the opportunity to take in the third alien planet she had ever been on, Alec was fascinated by the differences.

She wasn’t a stranger to desert terrain, but the colors here were so different than the ones found on Moika.

The night blooming flowers there had been vibrant, small shrubs and bushes just like here, but on Moika they had been bright green or red, and the sky had been blue.

Here on S9, the sky was a dull red, the flowers that did bloom were a dingy yellow, the dirt and rocks a mix of tan and gray.

With the naked eye, two of the neighboring planets could be seen glowing white and green, rising up on the horizon.

The temperature was high enough to make Alec sweat buckets, and all the commotion had stirred up the ultra-fine earth, making it cling to her body like a secondary layer of skin.

Alec was crouched on a boulder, eager to see the punishing sun gone as quickly as possible. Eager to get away from the insanity going on all around her and her small group. Eager to be done with this entire event.

She was hot, itchy, and ready to get the hell out of here and have a bath.

Having not yet seen a Sarazen-born female in her beast form, Alec couldn’t help the unkind thoughts of how hideous they were, or be grateful to know she was able to make a full shift to four legs.

The shortest of them topped out at eight feet tall, their sinewy bodies were entirely covered in fur, and their beautiful faces replaced with a short muzzle filled with razor sharp canines.

Their slanted eyes gone wild with lust as they raced through the desert, leaping over boulders with powerful thrusts of their muscled legs.

The females were more savage than Alec had expected, louder than their male counterparts, tackling the fully shifted warriors with gleeful abandon and submitting only when their male mate was able to get them in a choke hold.

~Did you forget to mention you were going to get your teeth around my throat and not let go until I went tits up?

Kalix’s amusement rippled through her despite the fact he was miles away.

~It is the only way to subdue a heat-crazed Sarazen female in her shift. Did you decide to take your fur, mate?

~No. But maybe I should. My skin is gray from the dust being kicked up, you might not recognize me.

~The choice is yours, I will be able to find you no matter what.

Alec scoffed and turned her face to the wind, trying to pick up the masculine scent unique to her mate.

There were so many, and he was so far away, but this morning he had challenged her before they had parted ways. Declaring he would find her within a few hours, or less.

~Not if I find you first.

~If you do shift, drink all the water you’re carrying first.

“Are you doing that telepathy thing with your mate?”

Even surrounded like they were by lust crazed beasts, Darya’s eyes were bright with excitement. At nineteen, Darya was the youngest of the women from Moika to be mated to a Sarazen. Wide-eyed and filled with wonder, she seemed to be having no trouble adapting to her new situation.

“Yes. Can you and...” Alec tried to remember the name of Darya’s mate, but was totally drawing a blank.

“Ke’denn,” Darya murmured with a shy blush, very obviously head over heels for the guy.

“Right, sorry. Can you and Ke’denn not talk to one another through your bond?” Alec wasn’t trying to imply something was wrong with Darya or her mate, but Darya’s blush deepened to one of embarrassment.

“Um, no. Not yet.”

The one male in their group, Ra’ten, slanted Alec a droll look, “Everyone’s bond develops differently.”

“I wasn’t implying there was anything wrong with Darya’s bonding to Ke’denn, Rotten.”

The big red eyed male curled his lip at her in annoyance. “My name is, Ra’ten. Rah-ten. Not, rotten. How many times must I correct you?”

Alec knew not every Sarazen male, mated or otherwise, would find her personality pleasing.

Unfortunately for him, there was something about Ra’ten that made it so easy for Alec to take pleasure in irritating him.

Perhaps it was the constant condescension in his tone. Or maybe the way he looked at her with such distaste when he held his mate in his lap at the dinner table.

Though maybe through his bond with Emma, Ra’ten knew Alec was the one to kill Emma’s father after he had become infected by the Scylla, and was outwardly expressing the emotion Emma in truth felt toward Alec.

A disturbing thought.

~You feel sadness, mate. Is something wrong?

Kalix flooded her with the soothing comfort of his presence, and she had to fight the smile her mouth wanted to curl into, not wanting Ra’ten to get the wrong idea.

~No, nothing is wrong. I’ll see you soon.

Alec stopped and turned half way around, not liking the hulking male at her back, realizing he had continued to speak while Alec had been focused on Kalix. She seriously needed to work on that.

It was like her ears couldn’t process sound or hear anything else when she spoke to Kalix via their bond.

It was a weakness, a small one, though one of significance if it meant not hearing an enemy sneak up on her, or miss out on an important verbal conversation.

“—and I know it is not due to your lack of intelligence, so clearly you do it on purpose for your own amusement.”

It did indeed give Alec a measure of enjoyment to see the alien male so easily riled, but it was less for her amusement and more for her peace of mind.

Pushing and pressing on this sore subject until Ra’ten threw off the thin veil of civility he wore and told her straight up why he had a problem with her.

Until she saw the most honest, open, unguarded side of him, it wouldn’t matter what Kalix said of Ra’ten’s trustworthiness.

Before Alec could respond to Ra’ten, the other woman in their group, Kaia, spoke up.

“I suggest if you wish Alec to stop being rude to you and finding ways to irritate you, you might consider speaking to her in a less condescending manner. It makes you seem less trustworthy.

“Alec, we’re wasting the light by lingering here. Vale says when the stars come out, the frenzy heightens.”

Alec nodded around a mouthful of water, beginning to feel the effects of the rising moon herself. All around her the female Sarazens’ calls were growing louder, the scent of their lust and need thicker.

It was making her twitchy, her own beast so restless inside her Alec had been unable to keep total control of her. For the past hour or so, she hadn’t been able to force her claws to retract.

As the minutes ticked by, the sun sinking lower and lower, the meaning behind the term ‘breeding heat’ became crystal clear.

Every move she made, from the breaths she took of the dusty air, to the motion of her throat working to swallow her water, her skin, her entire body grew insanely sensitive, which made the irritation of the powdery earth covering her so much more abrasive.

Her beast was on the hunt, directing and tugging her closer to Kalix with every step. Standing here wasting time dealing with Ra’ten was only making her angry, which in turn made it that much more difficult for Alec to keep hold of her beast and not go running off to leave the group to their own devices.

Alec felt the heat of arousal licking at her belly, a discomfort that would grow in strength the more she tried to ignore it, and Kalix.

“The rise of the heat appears to be the least of our problems.” Ra’ten pointed toward their left flank, and Alec had to shade her eyes in an attempt to make out what that shadow could be.

“Rain?” she guessed.

Ra’ten scoffed darkly. “Rain on this planet is a blessing. That, is a dust storm. We must run to meet our mates and find shelter before the storm hits. Come, quickly.”

*****

The winds that rushed ahead of the oncoming storm brought the alluring scent of his mate’s heat, and the driving need to hunt her down to breed was overpowered by the need to protect her. Kalix was no stranger to storms such as this one.

They came out of nowhere with an almost sentient violence, and soon the soft, ash-like dirt of S9 would feel like the kiss of a thousand knife blades on any exposed skin.

If he did not find Alec before the storm, did not find them shelter, she would be buried beneath the deluge.

Unacceptable.

~Alec, where are you?

~I’m on a desert planet, surrounded by crazed beasts, about to be consumed by a dust storm, while trying to find my beast amongst all this chaos so some puffed up official can make our mating legal.

This is the dumbest way to find a life-partner ever, and I hate whoever came up with such a cockamamie, disorganized, barbaric, outdated practice.

It’s not a ‘festival,’ it’s a goddamn free for all. I’m shocked I haven’t seen anyone die yet. Darya says to tell her mate she’s hungry and wants to go home now.

Despite the seriousness of the oncoming tempest, Kalix found himself smiling in reaction to his female’s testy rant.

His mate was uncomfortable, surrounded on all sides by strangers at their most volatile, and a force of nature was bearing down on them.

His One did not like such a blatant lack of control.

~I am confident Ke’denn feels the same, mate. The storm bearing down on us is bad, we must set aside our game of who will find who first. I need you to find space for all of us to shelter.

An outcropping of boulders, some kind of berm, anything to put our backs to. Ra’ten knows how to read the wind, he will help you decide which position will best shield us.

We will be racing toward the storm to reach you, it will be no more than a few hours, more if Ra’ten’s little mate can’t keep up.

Alec’s snort came through loud and clear along their bond.

~Emma will keep up. We’ll find shelter.

Kalix ordered his small group to consume all the water they carried and shift, the ominous rumble of the oncoming threat growing louder as it hurtled closer.

They had a hard run ahead of them, and he was concerned for the single female of his small group. Ra’ten’s mate was no weakling, but she was slight of form and the surface of S9 was unforgiving.

The gravity was heavier, the atmosphere thinner. The effort it took to breathe, especially when running, was much different than what the humans were used to. He himself was unused to it, and he had spent many seasons training here.

Ra’ten’s mate must have interpreted his look for what it was. Her chin shot up stubbornly and she marched around a boulder to disrobe.

When she returned, it was in her beast form, her tail twitching with impatience. Kalix fought a smile, sure he had never encountered beings as stubborn as humans.

In his fur, his senses were even sharper, the airborne spoor of his mate’s exertions carried to him as he ran toward the oncoming clouds.

Toward Alec.

His beast lived for the thrill of this hunt, his muscles loose and limber, his lungs burning with the glory of knowing every ground eating stride brought him closer to her.

Kalix would find her, even if he had to put his shoulder to the wind and claw his way through the silt blindly. Whatever it took to get to her.

The Breeding Festival wasn’t just an opportunity to call a mate to him: it was a chance to prove to himself worthy.

To prove he would struggle, claw, fight to cross whatever obstacle was put before him, prove his willingness, his ability to sacrifice whatever he must to find and claim his One.

In the back of his mind, Kalix felt shame he knew would never truly go away. Shame for having left Alec alone to fend for herself so he could complete a mission he knew others were capable of, was equivalent to him leaving her now in this desert.

This was his chance to make her believe and accept him as her mate. No matter the past, no matter how he had wronged her, Alec would never again wonder if it was the will of the Asho’na or Kalix’s own desire that pushed him to claim her.

*****

Blood mixed with the powder fine earth in her palms, but Alec didn’t stop. There had been no berm, no embankment to take shelter against, so Alec and her girls did what they knew how to do best.

They built what they needed to survive the night with what they had on hand.

What they had on hand was a shit ton of boulders. Ra’ten had argued for them to push on and meet their mates, that they find shelter along the way.

Alec had ignored the idea, uncertain if the terrain would change at all between here and now, and had given Ra’ten her full support if he wanted to fuck off and find his own mate.

She, Darya, and Kaia had worked together to roll the large boulders already in proximity to them closer together in a U shape.

They pulled up the patches of thick grass, discovering the blades were sharp enough to cut, each of them lacerating their palms deeply before learning to use their tunics to wrap around the greenish-gray stalks first.

Eventually Ra’ten had given in and put his back into adding more boulders behind the larger ones to block the smaller gaps near the ground, studiously avoiding the fact that Alec and the girls were all bare chested except for a strap across their breasts.

~How far away are you? Alec called to Kalix.

He answered immediately, a dark growl accompanying his thoughts. ~You bleed. I smell it. How badly are you hurt? Were you attacked? Where is Ra’ten? Why does he not protect you?

Kalix’s questions grew increasingly louder, until Alec felt as though her body was vibrating from the volume.

~I’m fine, I cut my hands a little, that’s all. Don’t worry about Ra’ten. Just get here, the wind is picking up.

~I’m coming, mate. Take your fur now, before it’s too late. The wind and silt will feel worse than a thousand blades on your bare skin.

Alec assured him she would, but there was still more to do on the shelter. As she earned herself another slice on the hand, Alec snarled, wondering whose stupid idea it had been to ban the use of any weapons or technology.

She could have used her blades, the torc that encased her body in protective armor and  would have shielded her perfectly from the oncoming atmospheric assault.

But noooo. That would have simply been too easy. Too logical! Alec kicked the last wad of grass she had gathered into a cranny, venting her immediate frustration on the bloodied stalks.

Darya winced as she finished with her section, and Kaia announced she was finished also. They used some of their precious water to wash the worst of their cuts off and drank all they could before shifting to settle and wait for their mates to find them.

Ra’ten rounded the corner, coming up short to see the three of them, huffing and insisting their shelter wasn’t good enough, commanding them to gather more grass, to do more, and Alec reached her limit.

The girls lay down, as though sensing what was to come. Alec felt her bones and muscles roll as she fluidly got to her feet, her ears flattening to her skull in preparation for a fight.

While Ra’ten was busy ranting about how their shelter was inadequate, Alec filled her lungs with the dusty air and let loose a coughing roar so loud it echoed across the entire valley.

Ra’ten was startled enough to trip over his own feet and fall halfway back on his ass, going stiff and still as Alec prowled to crawl over him, a continuous menacing growl rolling from inside her, ruffling the hair at Ra’ten’s brow.

Alec flexed her paw, her razor sharp claws sliding forward to rest against Ra’ten’s jugular. She could feel it pulsing, the heavy throb mirroring the scent of his surprise and uncertainty.

He wasn’t afraid, and though she certainly had his attention, Alec and her beast were both dissatisfied with the challenge he gave by not lowering his gaze or offering his throat in submission. She curled her lips back to bare her teeth at him, drawing blood with her claws.

Just enough to prick, sensing his beast struggling under the weight of her glare, deciding whether or not to attack the mate of his superior, or submit.

The pressure of the creature inside her became overpowering, like a heatwave pressing down on Ra’ten, making his eyes bug out and his face turn red with the effort it took to not shed his skin and become his beast.

“You... aren’t like... the others,” Ra’ten gasped out. This mighty warrior beneath her, so close to her teeth, shuddered, his hands digging fistfuls into the dirt as though he was trying to hold onto it. Onto himself to keep from changing. 

She lowered her nose to his so he had to cross his bulging eyes in order to maintain their eye contact. Alec was no longer totally in charge, and her beast was not in the mood to be denied.

She was the mate of a commander, and soon they would hold a territory both vast and vulnerable. There was no room for warriors who challenged them or thought her weak.

If she was weak, Kalix was weak, and their territory could and would be taken by someone stronger. Ra’ten thought she was weak, unwilling to stand up to him as though she feared his skill as a warrior.

He might be three times her age, but he had no idea who she was. What she was capable of. What she would do to keep herself and those who mattered to her safe.

Ra’ten would submit, or he would die.

Alec knew the reaction was extreme, but this was where it started, and he didn’t have much longer to decide.

The pitch of her growl deepened and she felt his throat work beneath her paw. Ra’ten slowly turned his face away, baring his throat to her, his muscles relaxing beneath her bulk.

“My apologies, Asha’na,” he murmured respectfully, not a single hint of artifice in his tone to imply he was anything but sincere.

The tension between her shoulder blades eased with those three simple words and the act of his submission. She huffed, smacking his shoulder before stepping off his body to return to the meager protection of their shelter.

Neither of the beasts waiting, Kaia or Darya, seemed overly surprised or unsettled by Alec’s display.

When Ra’ten got to his feet and changed into his fur, he sat as far from her as possible while staying within the half circle of boulders, his head dropped low, careful not to move to quickly or give Alec any indication of aggression on his part.

Smart.

It seemed as though hours went by, the roar of the oncoming wind almost drowning out the shrieking of the half shifted females seeking their mates, the creatures seemingly oblivious for the fury of the oncoming storm.

Then suddenly, the dust and sand kicked up as the gale force winds rushed over them, around their shelter of boulders, seconds later Kalix and the others burst into view.

Alec got up to meet her mate, making it only a few steps before he was on her, rubbing his face against hers, chuffing at her insistently even as he used his shoulder to push and herd her to the back of the boulders.

Kalix shook the bundle of his clothes from his back and caught it in his teeth, nudging one end against her mouth.

~Take this, lie down with me and use it to cover your face.

Already choking and squinting against the dust, Alec didn’t argue. She lay down against the side of the boulder, clawing at the fabric saturated with his scent until it covered her eyes, sighing when he curled around her, the thicker fur at his throat providing even more protection for her to burrow into.

~Kalix, there’s plenty of cloth to cover you as well.

His purr rumbled against her fur, her hide twitching when he gently began to knead at her shoulders with his enormous paws. The air she was able to breathe was thick with heat, but better than getting a lungful of dust.

Kalix kept his face tucked to her throat, continuing to massage and hug her to his side while the weather raged around them.

~My mane and yours offers plenty of protection, mate. The storm will be over soon. Why do you smell of Ra’ten?

Kalix’s question to her was tinged with a growl of displeasure. She shrugged, shifting and nosing around to try and find a more comfortable position.

~We have had an ongoing disagreement. I settled it.

~An ongoing disagreement? What disagreement? You said nothing to me of this.

~I mentioned I found him untrustworthy due to his attitude toward me, you assured me he was an honorable male, and I disagreed. I still don’t trust him.

He hasn’t give me a reason to, and the way he acts in my presence doesn’t make me believe he would support us in a time of crisis.

You, perhaps. Me, he definitely wouldn’t. Emma doesn’t much care for me as I was forced to kill the last of her family, so I’m sure her dislike has made Ra’ten feel the same merely on principle.

However, he got cocky and began to believe he could command me. Our disagreement came to a head and I made it clear he was mistaken.

Kalix was quiet above her, his rumbling purrs having momentarily been swallowed by angry growls. She felt the prick of his claws through her fur and gave him a thump,

~The matter is dealt with, and if it requires further attention, I will involve you.

He grunted, rubbing his furred jaw back and forth over the top of her head, radiating outrage.

~We must be a team, Alec, an undefeatable pair if we are to keep the territory given to us by the Asho. If you do not involve me, how are we undefeatable?

Alec sighed, stirring the dust coating her to rise and muddy the semi-clear air she was able to take in.

~Ra’ten is not the first who will test me, Kalix. The warriors under your command know you. They trust you to lead them.

There is no reason they will follow or trust me unless I prove I am capable. I fully expect you to have my back, if you agree with me.

~There is no ‘if,’ Alec. We will have disagreements. When we do, it will be done in private and we will resolve it. I am your mate, I will never stand against you.

With his declaration ringing in her mind, in the middle of a howling dust storm, while hundreds of creatures continued to hunt for a mate all around them, Alec fell asleep.

There was no resistance as she slipped off, her cat content in the knowledge that as long as she was curled beneath her mate, she was safe.